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A conductor is a piece of metal used to conduct electricity, known colloquially as an electrical wire. Wires are very good conductors, which mean that they have very little resistance. In fact, their resistance is so small that often we consider it to be zero. (In other words, we often treat wires as perfect conductors).

In the United States, conductors are measured by American wire gauge (abbreviated AWG) for smaller ones, and circular mils for larger ones. To give you some idea how thick these wires are; AWG 0000 wire is about 11.7 millimeters in diameter (a little less than one-half inch thick) and at the opposite end of the scale, AWG 40 is less than 0.1 millimeters in diameter (about as thick as a strand of hair from your head). The wiring inside the walls of your home is usually AWG 10 or AWG 12 wire.

Of the metals commonly used for conductors, copper, has a high conductivity. Silver is more conductive, but due to cost it is not practical in most cases. Compared to copper, aluminum has worse conductivity per unit volume, but better conductivity per unit weight. In many cases, weight is more important than volume making aluminium the 'best' conductor material for certain applications. For example, it is commonly used for large-scale power distribution conductors such as overhead power lines.

Conductors are usually surrounded by and/or supported by insulators and the insulation determines the maximum voltage that can be applied to any given conductor. The ampacity of a conductor, that is, the amount of current it can carry, is related to its electrical resistance; a lower-resistance conductor can carry more current. The resistance, in turn, is determined by the material of the conductor and its size. For a given material, conductors with a larger cross-sectional area have less resistance than conductors with a smaller cross-sectional area.

This 3-hr course provides general requirements, classifications and application information for electrical conductors. The course is based entirely on Naval Education and Training Materials (NAVEDTRA 14176), Electricity and Electronic Training Series; Module-4 and covers Chapter 1 titled “Electrical Conductors”.

The student must take a multiple-choice quiz consisting of fifteen (15) questions at the end of this course to obtain PDH credits.

State Board Acceptance

This course can be used by professional engineers to fulfill PDH requirements mandated by state and provincial licensing boards. Decatur Professional Development is an approved provider of continuing education in all states that pre-approve course providers. In all other states that mandate continuing education for engineers, it is the individual engineer's responsibility to determine the suitability of activities for PDH credit. The state boards typically accept online* courses that cover technical, managerial** or ethical content and which are relevant to the practice of engineering. The course must have a clear purpose or objective with a content that will maintain, improve or expand the skills and knowledge of the licensee's field of practice. For questions about your mandatory PDH requirements, visit the website of your state licensing board.

*Online courses are accepted by all state licensing boards that mandate continuing education. Other than New York (which limits online courses to 18 PDH) and Iowa (which limits online courses to 6 PDH), there are no limits placed by other states on the number of hours that can be earned through online continuing education. Consult with your state licensing board if you have any questions about the acceptability of online courses.

**The New York State Board of Engineers does not accept general office management courses, but will accept project management courses that are offered by an approved provider and that are technical in nature and contribute to the engineer's professional practice.

Please Note: Continuing Education credits for this course are awarded as PDH (Professional Development Hour Credits).